What the world can learn about equality from the Nordics

Rising inequality is one of the biggest social and economic issues of our time. It is linked to poorer economic growth and fosters social discontent and unrest. So, given that the five Nordic countries – Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden – are some of the world's most equal on a number of measures, it makes sense to look to them for lessons in how to build a more equal society.

Read more... http://theconversation.com/what-the-world-can-learn-about-equality-from-the-nordic-model-99797

Trump and the dollar: what you need to know

President-elect Donald Trump got Wall Street's attention this week by saying the U.S. dollar is "too strong," warning that a soaring greenback has "disadvantages" for U.S. companies that do a lot of business abroad.

Read more... https://www.google.com/amp/amp.usatoday.com/story/96719578/

Inflation: next year's ticking time bomb

The last time sterling fell off a cliff we were in the midst of global financial crisis from 2007 to 2008. The currency shock sent inflation shooting up to 5.2pc, abruptly squeezing on real living standards.

Read more... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/10/22/inflation-next-years-ticking-time-bomb/

JIM ROGERS: The US dollar might turn into a bubble

The US dollar coud hit bubble levels as investors seek safe havens, according to legendary investor Jim Rogers.

"The dollar is going to get overpriced," Rogers said in an interview with Real Vision TV released Friday, "and the dollar might even turn into a bubble, depending on how bad the turmoil is."

Read more... http://www.businessinsider.com/jim-rogers-the-us-dollar-might-turn-into-a-bubble-2016-8

The new and improved Panama Canal: How will it affect US businesses?

The newly widened Panama Canal could rewrite how fuel extracted in the US traverses the globe.

The canal expansion opened on June 26 with a third lane that accommodates big ships such as liquified natural gas (LNG) ships, 90 percent of which may now travel across the canal, including those that hold as much as 3.9 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of fuel, according to a report from the US Energy Information Administration released June 30.

Read more... http://m.csmonitor.com/Business/2016/0703/The-new-and-improved-Panama-Canal-How-will-it-affect-US-businesses

Davos 2016: Tackling oil challenge and inequality trap

In a world of social media and technology, networking has become commonplace. Once a year, the world's biggest and most powerful networking event, the World Economic Forum's annual meeting, takes place in Switzerland.

Last week, world leaders met in Davos to discuss the biggest challenges facing the global economy in 2016: Crushing markets and currencies, the falling price of oil, global inequality, migration, the rise of technology, and the threat of another recession.

Read more... http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/countingthecost/2016/01/davos-2016-tackling-oil-challenge-inequality-trap-160123120345475.html

Warm Regards,

Lillian Wong
Sr. Loan Officer
NMLS  630337
Prospect Mortgage
14635 N. Kierland Blvd. Ste. 100
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
Cell    480 650 5412
Fax   877 220 7982
www.lillianwong.net

Join in going green. Please do not print this email unless it is absolutely necessary.

IMF admits China's yuan to elite currency club

China's yuan has just won promotion to the premier league of global currencies.
The International Monetary Fund on Monday approved the yuan for inclusion in its elite basket of reserve currencies in what amounts to a major vote of confidence in Beijing's economic reforms.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said the decision represented "an important milestone" in China's integration into the global financial system.

Read more... http://money.cnn.com/2015/11/30/investing/imf-yuan-reserve-currency/index.html?iid=hp-stack-dom

Interest Rate Hike 2015: China Warns Against Federal Reserve Increase Because Of Critical Dollar

The United States shouldn't raise interest rates to avoid hurting developing nations dependent on the U.S. dollar, China's finance minister said. Lou Jiwei said the dollar remained critical to the global economy.

"The United States isn't at the point of raising interest rates yet, and under its global responsibilities, it can't raise rates," Lou said in an interview published in the China Business News Monday. He spoke during the annual meeting of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in Lima, Peru.

Read more... http://www.ibtimes.com/interest-rate-hike-2015-china-warns-against-federal-reserve-increase-because-critical-2137506?ft=w18y0

Japan's finance minister warns China on currency moves

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said Friday that recent moves by China to allow its currency to depreciate are a concern and could pose problems for Tokyo.

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock index fell 3 percent to 19,435.83 on Friday, slipping below the psychological 20,000 mark on widespread selling.
"Chinese factors are a big part of this, without a doubt," Aso said at a regular news briefing.

Read more... http://www.apnewsarchive.com/2015/Japan-s-finance-minister-says-China-s-currency-moves-a-concern-for-Tokyo/id-12828832fb994b9992aa1e3f415840e8

The price of diamonds is collapsing

Market prices for diamonds are in a long, slow, five-year decline and it's causing havoc for diamond producers.

Petra Diamonds reported a 10% sales drop in the first half of the year to $425 million today, while luxury brand De Beers saw a 23% collapse in profits to $360 million last week.

The diamond price is to blame, driven by falling demand in, you guessed it, China. Diamond prices have dropped about 12% over the last five years.

Read more... http://www.businessinsider.com/the-price-of-diamonds-is-collapsing-2015-7?r=UK&IR=T

In Hong Kong, Grandma Has to Find a Job

(Bloomberg) -- Eighty-six years old and still job hunting.

Wong Siu-ying had to stop passing out leaflets on a Hong Kong flyover when she hurt her knee in August. With two-thirds of her social security income spent on rent and no steady allowance from her three children, retirement isn't an option.

Read more...  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-23/grandmas-vie-for-jobs-as-asia-s-worst-aging-crisis-looms-in-h-k-

Severe congestion at America's busiest ports is about to be eased

Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, said on Thursday the dispute had caused delays of "pockets of merchandise" and that the potential cost had been included in the company's earnings forecasts this week.

The deal was welcomed by groups such as the National Association of Manufacturersand the U.S. Meat Export Federation.

Read more...  http://www.businessinsider.com/severe-congestion-at-americas-busiest-ports-is-about-to-be-eased-2015-2

In Davos, Loggerheads Over a Cure for Europe’s Economic Funk

DAVOS, Switzerland — The World Economic Forum here is supposed to be a special place where people of differing viewpoints can learn from each other as they figure out solutions to the world's problems.

But the rarefied mountain air has so far not inspired the thought leaders on hand to agree on a cure for Europe's enduring economic funk.

Read more...  http://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/dealbook/2015/01/22/at-davos-3-camps-at-loggerheads-on-cure-for-europes-economic-funk/?referrer=

ECB's Draghi Takes a Gamble on QE-lite - WSJ

It was a watershed moment. All year, the European Central Bank has faced growing pressure—from governments, markets, the mainstream economics establishment, the International Monetary Fund—to embark on a large-scale government bond-buying program. And all year, the ECB had resisted, arguing repeatedly that quantitative easing would yield little benefit in the eurozone's bank-centric, structurally challenged economy and warning of the political and moral hazard that would arise as a result of exposing the ECB balance sheet directly to sovereign credit risk.

Read more... http://online.wsj.com/articles/ecbs-draghi-takes-a-gamble-on-qe-lite-1410121204

Davos 2013 Closes With Warning To Global Economy: 'Do Not Relax' - The Huffington Post

DAVOS, Switzerland -- The crisis mood is gone, but that doesn't mean you can slip back into your old ways – that's the message from top international finance officials wrapping up the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.  Read more...  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/2013/01/26/davos-2013-economists-war_n_2559186.html

Jim Yong Kim secures World Bank job amid criticism of US domination of role | Business | guardian.co.uk

The World Bank said in a statement: 'We all look forward to working with Dr Kim when he assumes his responsibilities.' Photograph: Andrew Harrer/EPA

The World Bank named Korean-born doctor Jim Yong Kim as its new president today amid criticism that the role had once more gone to a US-nominated candidate.

The 52-year-old president of Ivy League college Dartmouth beat Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to the post, the first time in the World Bank's history that the US candidate has faced a serious challenge.

US president Barack Obama nominated Kim to replace current World Bank chief Robert Zoellick in March. Kim, who was born in Seoul, the South Korean capital, is a public health expert – a change from the bank's usual nomination of candidate from the financial world.

The World Bank presidency has gone to a US candidate since the organisation was founded at the Bretton Woods conference at the close of the second world war. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), its sister organisation, has always been run by a European.

The US backed France's Christine Lagarde's nomination to the top role at the IMF last year after the shock resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn. In return, Kim received Europe's backing for the World Bank job.

But in recent years the organisations have faced growing criticism over their US/European duopoly. Ahead of the announcement, Okonjo-Iweala said: "You know this thing is not really being decided on merit."

"It is voting with political weight and shares, and therefore the United States will get it," she told reporters at a briefing on the country's 2012 budget.

A third candidate, Colombia's former finance minister Jose Antonio Ocampo, pulled out of the race Friday, calling the selection process a "political-oriented exercise".

Okonjo-Iweala said that although she expected her challenge to the US's nomination to fail, the process "will never ever be the same again".

"So we have won a big victory. Who gets to run the World Bank – we have shown we can contest this thing and Africa can produce people capable of running the entire architecture," she said.

Kim was a surprise nomination for the role. The 52-year-old is a leading figure in global health and a former director of the HIV/Aids department at the World Health Organization. He moved with his family to the US at the age of five.

Brazillian and South African government officials reiterated their support for Okonjo-Iweala on Monday. Before the announcement, South African finance minister Pravin Gordhan said there was a need to "look beyond the verbiage of democracy and the claims to democratic process, and ask whether in substantive terms the institution has met the democratic test."

In a statement, the World Bank said: "We, the executive directors, wish to express our deep appreciation to all the nominees, Jim Yong Kim, José Antonio Ocampo and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Their candidacies enriched the discussion of the role of the president and of the World Bank group's future direction. The final nominees received support from different member countries, which reflected the high calibre of the candidates. We all look forward to working with Dr Kim when he assumes his responsibilities."

Professor Simon Evenett, a former World Bank official who works at the University of St Gallen in Switzerland, said Kim's appointment was inevitable. "The Obama administration would almost certainly have withheld support for Lagarde's appointment to the IMF if European nations had not agreed in advance to support whomever was Washington's candidate for the World Bank," he said.

"There was never really a contest. Some developing countries probably figured this out and put up a strong candidate to embarrass the west, hoping that this will lead to a more open process in the future. Don't bet on that. The west won't give up its hold over these institutions until they need something from the emerging markets."

by Dominic Rushe the Guardian Apr 16, 2012


Jim Yong Kim secures World Bank job amid criticism of US domination of role | Business | guardian.co.uk

Elections could change Phoenix's direction

With five of nine seats on the Phoenix City Council available, this year's election could determine the city's direction in ways that no recent election has done.

Incumbents are running in three districts and an interim councilman in a fourth. Those in office typically have been hard to defeat. Two other spots - including the mayor's office - are wide open.

Two of the incumbents have no viable opposition, but the way the other spots turn out could determine whether the city turns toward "tea-party" principles espoused by Councilman Sal DiCiccio - who is not in the running this election - or a more measured approach.

At issue is whether DiCiccio's grievances about employee pay and union control of City Hall will hold sway.

So far, the main citywide issues gaining candidates' attention are the food tax, the water-rate increase and the responsiveness of City Hall. Unions have been a concern of several candidates, but not all of them.

Most of the candidates support bringing more high-paying jobs to town, and all of them support finding additional efficiencies in city government.

Those latter issues are the ones a variety of community leaders would prefer to hear more about.

Jan Olav Flaaten, the executive director of the Arizona Ecumenical Council, an organization of churches and religious leaders, said he wants to see more specifics about how the city can attract jobs, support neighborhoods and improve schools.

He said he sees too much partisanship creeping into the nonpartisan race.

"I seek candidates with an openness to solutions," he said. "We need a balanced approach."

Besides a vigorous mayoral race, council seats up for election this time around as part of a regular cycle are Districts 1, 3, 5 and 7.

Also on the ballot is District 2, the result of Peggy Neely resigning to run for mayor earlier this year before her term is completed.

The incumbents in Districts 3 and 7, Bill Gates and Michael Nowakowski, appear to be clear front-runners, as their challengers have run little or no campaigns. District 3 takes in an area of Phoenix generally between Bell Road and Northern Avenue east of Interstate 17. District 7 covers south Phoenix.

Districts 1 and 2 are different, with strong candidates campaigning to challenge current officeholders Thelda Williams and Bryan Jeffries, who was appointed to replace Neely.

District 1 takes in areas of the city north of Northern Avenue and west of I-17, reaching as far west as 67th Avenue; District 2 takes in a large northeastern area of Phoenix.

District 5 in west Phoenix, meanwhile, is wide open, the only race certain to bring a new face to city government because incumbent Councilman Claude Mattox, whose term expires at the end of the year, is running for mayor.

The issues the candidates are discussing are not the issues voters need to hear about, said several citizens who pay close attention to what the council does.

Employee pay and concern over the food tax and water rates are yesterday's issues, neighborhood activist Paul Barnes said.

He said he wishes the candidates would focus on what the city can do to attract "first-class jobs."

"We can't fall back into the trap of counting on construction to pull us out of this hole," Barnes said.

Former Mayor Terry Goddard noted this is the first "open" mayor's race, without a front-runner or an obvious choice, in a long time.

"It's time to look at the future of the city in a comprehensive way," he said.

Goddard said most of the candidates are speaking in generalities but without a broad vision for the city.

"There is a lack of big-picture thinking," Goddard said.

Jessica Franken, an attorney who represents numerous small businesses, said more attention is being paid to state and national issues, particularly the debt-ceiling debate, than to city issues.

"There is a perception that the issue of job creation is not being discussed very deeply," Franken said. "People may not understand how the mayor can affect their businesses."

Election day is Aug. 30, but the city will be mailing out early-voting ballots to registered voters this week.

Monday is the last day to register to vote. For more information, visit phoenix.gov/election/vote idx.html or call 602-261-8683.

In addition to the mayor and council, Phoenix voters will consider two ballot propositions, one that would allow the city to determine its own spending as opposed to a state formula from the 1980s and another to determine whether a QuikTrip gas station can be built near 44th Street and Palm Lane.

by Michael Clancy The Arizona Republic Jul. 30, 2011 10:46 PM





Elections could change Phoenix's direction

U.S. Trade Deficit

The federal government borrows about 40 cents for every dollar it spends. Current debt limit is reaching $14.3 trillion.

China and U.S. Debt

China holds $1.2 trillion in U.S. debt.

Foreclosures...

Here's one thing we know for sure: Foreclosure inventory volume is outpacing foreclosure sales, and foreclosure sales are already more than one third of the market right now. Distressed properties sell at a big discount, pushing prices down all around them. Banks are pushing to get rid of foreclosed properties now, and pushing to get borrowers in the process out of the process before the state attorneys general and federal regulators come down with some kind of painful settlement. That's more inventory, as consumer confidence continues to fall. You tell me where prices are headed...